Timely Advice and Information for the Faculty Association's Newest Members

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

On Purpose

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by Sarah Gutowski, Chair, New Member Mentoring ProgramWelcome to the inaugural post
of the FA’s blog for New Members! As you may remember from the little speech I
gave at Orientation . . . way, way back on August 27 (doesn’t it seem so very
long ago?) . . . this year I’m replacing an old tradition of sending out email
blasts during the months of October and March with weekly posts to a blog
hosted by the Faculty Association.

These posts will have much of the same
information you would have received during the email blasts, but my hope is
that they will be a little more timely and a little less overwhelming than an
email-a-day during two isolated months of the year . . . and therefore a little
more useful to you. The FA’s New Member Program, after all, stems from the FA’s
intent to be useful to its members beyond the business of contract negotiations.

Hover Fly, Eastern Campus

This is one of the reasons I like, genuinely and
without pretense, being a part of the New Member Program. I find it purposeful,
and not just in a blanket-statement, yay-for-the-union, cheerleading kind of
way. As I stress to all of my new students during our first class meetings: I
loathe busy work. It’s beneath me to give out that kind of work, and it should
be beneath them to accept that from their college professor. Likewise, I’m
uninterested in performing service at the college simply because someone said,
“Hey, you know what? This will be good for promotion.” Far too often, service
in higher education is created and accepted reflexively, a knee-jerk reaction
to a culture that assumes – surprisingly, oddly – that a legion of intelligent,
self-motivated, highly learned and skilled employees will fall in line with a
system that dangles title and salary like bait before them.

Of course, too often we find ourselves leaping
for the bait.

That might sound like it’s coming from a kind of
dark, jaded place deep down within my psyche, and perhaps at one point it did
spring from such a place, and perhaps you’re thinking right now, “Wow,
Gutowski. Isn’t that a little heavy for the first full week of school?” Mmmm,
perhaps. But I would counter that perhaps there is no better time than now, as
we begin this new academic year, in new jobs, among new colleagues, to remember
that we can have it both ways. We can do what is required of us, contractually
and as professional members of an institution of higher learning, (and because
we do, after all, wish to get that promotion and pay raise) – but we can do so
with intent, cautiously and intelligently.

For instance, eventually you’ll make your way to
one of the Promotion Workshops held on your campus and you’ll hear Sean Tvelia,
the FA’s new Vice President, tell you to focus on your teaching during your
first year. He’ll tell you – as Kevin Peterman once told my own new member
cohort – to save the committee work for your sophomore year, and the years that
follow.

This is good advice. It’s going to prove
difficult to follow, though, if you’re an engaged, enthusiastic, friendly sort
of colleague (and I’m trusting you are, because our search committees look for
just such kinds of people). The more you get to know your colleagues, and the
more they get to know you, the more you’ll find yourself asked to participate
in one activity here, which will lead to another commitment there, which will
result in your joining one committee here, and yet another committee there.
Eventually, if you’re not careful, by your second year you’ll find yourself on
four departmental committees, three campus committees and two college-wide
committees and absolutely no free common hours between Halloween and
commencement.

Not that I would know anything about that. **
cough **

I’m not trying to persuade you to “do nothing.”
Absolutely not! In fact, I think that apathy or ambivalence often can be more
damaging and soul-sucking than over-commitment and burnout. Instead, I’m
advocating – as someone who has tread this path before, as someone who is still
walking this path toward promotion and the Fulfilling Career (caps
necessary) – to walk this walk carefully, and at a pace with which you’re
comfortable.

How does one do that? Remember to give yourself
space to think about whether or not you want to invest your time and energy in
any particular task. If someone asks you to be on a committee, or to
participate in a long-term project, request a week’s grace period to consider.

But first, ask lots of questions. Make sure you
know exactly what the committee or project would require of you in terms of
meetings (including how long the meetings will be and where they will be
located), workload, and expertise. Highlight the pros, and figure out if there
are any cons to such a commitment: ask your mentor for his or her input, and
talk to more senior colleagues and see what they know about the committee or
the project in question, and take note of their perspectives.

Also, trust your instincts. If someone asks you
to participate in a project, and you feel as if you have no business being
there – you probably don’t.

This isn’t to discourage you from taking risks
or from working outside of your comfort zone. By now, we all know that lots of
people discover new loves and new talents when they push themselves to try
something new, right? But there’s a difference between trying something new
that excites and energizes you, and doing something that someone else decided
would be good for you and for the college – especially if that something makes
your stomach turn when you think about it. Prize your autonomy, and protect it.
Don’t join a project because someone else said you should.

And try, if you can, to avoid joining a
committee only because you need its particular kind of service. This college is
constantly changing -- developing, evolving -- as all good institutions of
higher learning should. The needs of the college are constantly going to be in
flux and varied in number, but one thing that won’t change is the
college’s need for its members to provide service.

For instance, maybe a year before you’re allowed
to apply for promotion, you realize you lack any real campus-wide experience.
Don’t go jumping into any old campus-wide commitment just because you need it
and you fear you won’t have the opportunity again. You can always postpone
applying for promotion – and move at your own pace. After all, there will
always be work to do. There will always be another opportunity. And if you give
yourself enough space and time to breathe, both literally and metaphorically,
you may find that you’re the one who creates that opportunity.

I’m inspired and motivated when I see a
colleague immerse him or herself in a project thoroughly, and with conviction
and enthusiasm, because he or she has a clear idea of the project’s purpose.
Over the past few years, I’ve tried to navigate my own career at the college
with that kind of clarity and conviction. As you begin your own careers at
SCCC, I wish for you that same drive, that same eagerness, that same palpable
and irrepressible sense of purpose.

Have a happy and successful fall semester.

(Next week’s blog post will be more “nuts and
bolts.” And shorter! Yay for shorter!)

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The Faculty Association of Suffolk Community College

A Union of Professionals

about the new member mentoring program

The primary goal of the Mentoring Program is to instill a sense of community for new members via the Faculty Association. The program consists of activities and events designed to assist new faculty members with adjustment to college life and serve as an introduction to union activity.

about the blog

From September through May, the newest faculty members of SCCC (and their mentors) will receive links to weekly posts featuring information and advice pertinent to their first year experience at the college.

about the new member discussion series

The Faculty Association’s New Member Program will hold four professional development panel discussions throughout the year in cooperation with the Office for Faculty and Professional Advancement. These sessions will be moderated by the chair of the New Member Program and feature mentors and junior members of the faculty. Topics are intended to help new members shape their career paths at SCCC with purpose, efficiency, and confidence.